Saint-Boniface, QC: Your 2025 Kraft Hockeyville Winner

“What and where?” might be the questions on the minds of many in the United States. The “what” is the easy answer, but the “where” is the FUN one! Let’s meet a town, region and rink most have never heard of. 

First- “the what.” Kraft Hockeyville is an annual competition across Canada (with a separate US version) that awards $250,000 in rink renovations to the municipality that best exemplifies what a hockey town is. It also comes with an NHL Pre Season game for added publicity, and the NHL Players association kicks in $10,000 in equipment for the local youth hockey programs. As the focal point of so many small town recreation centers, rinks are a necessary but expensive part of community budgets running on limited tax bases. Kraft Hockeyville money can mean the difference of closing up shop versus continuing for another generation of youth sports and community fabric. The 2025 title was awarded to Saint-Boniface, QC and their aging (1999) Arena Saint-Boniface.

Now for some fun: So, where is Saint-Boniface? Located in the Mauricie Region of Quebec, Saint-Boniface is a town of just over 5,000 inhabitants, located between Trois-Rivieres and Shawiningan, and accessible by Autoroute 55. 

The region grew as a logging center to source fuel to the Forges du Saint Maurice. In 1855, the first official settlement was established as Canton de Shawinigan, and later named for its Patron Saint, the reformer of the Frankish Church. The town would remain linked to the larger neighboring city of Shawinigan (Saint-Boniface-de-Shawinigan) until 2003 when it gained status as it’s own municipality.

Today, Saint-Boniface continues to grow slowly but steadily, and is home to both local and regional outdoor attractions including its own Parc Heritage Carcajou which offers camping, hiking and canoeing, as well as winter recreation.  

This park includes just one of the several ponds and lakes within the municipal limits, providing plenty of options for nature lovers, outdoor enthusiasts, or those looking to relax. If that’s not enough of an outdoor scene, the town also sits near the base of the Mauricie National Park, which provides near limitless outdoor options. The town's historical and current connection to its natural surroundings is on display in a series of recently adopted slogans ending with "de Nature," and is highlighted by one it's most famous citizens, Serge Corbin, a North American Canoeing Champion.

Corbin joins an impressive list of those born in Saint-Boiniface, which includes former Olympic Speed Walker Marcel Jobin, and Aline (Chaine) Chretien, wife of former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Cretien.

The town’s steady growth shows more of a natural increase compared to the number of towns across the province that saw massive increases in population as part of the Covid-induced urban exodus. Sitting just 6 miles from downtown Shawinigan and 19 highway miles from Trois-Rivieres, Saint-Boniface’s growth is logically due to its proximity to urban work, shopping and entertainment options.

Linguistically, Saint-Boniface is typical of the smaller municipalities with around 98% of inhabitants claiming French as the primary or only language.

Of specialty interest for genealogists, Saint-Boniface is part of the Mauricie Region, which can claim a certain uniqueness. As published in the Nouvelliste in February of 2023, the most common surnames of the region are Gelinas, Boisvert and Gauthier. This interesting tidbit makes Mauricie the only region where none of the province-wide Top 3 names (Tremblay, Gagnon, Roy) are included in its own top 3.  

From Small & steady to tranquil & outdoorsy, Saint-Boniface is a lot of things for a small town. The list includes accessible, convenient, genealogically unique, and now: Hockeyville. Of course, this is just one of so many towns we can put on our radar when traveling to or around the province. Ladies and Gentlemen; Saint-Boniface, QC.